The How I Met Your Mother Blog

Well it finally happened. The Britney Spears episode. While I found her to be mediocre; a much needed return of Romantic Ted, not one but two appearances of Charlene Amoia, and the hilarious twosome of Barney and Robin—complete with an allusion to whether or not they’ve hooked up—this episode has it all. I think it is one of the best this season.

What Was Good

Where to begin? First, Sarah Chalke. I’ve always loved her awkward charm on Scrubs and she brought that here (in a very similar role) without it seeming like Eliot Reed was on screen. “The last two minute date I had gave me a daughter”—she was a character that was easy to fall in love with. Plus, she looks damn good in a lab coat. Fun trivia: the lab coat she used here is the same she uses on Scrubs, she brought it with her to the set since it’s tailored for her.

Robin. This is how I like Robin best—lambasting everyone else from the balcony. She also was looking good with her fancy movie star hair. Cobie Smulders does this role so well that in the same episode she can make a fool of herself and still make fun of everyone else. The funniest joke of the night was when she said “I got it a little” in reference to the “condition” of which Stella was allegedly suffering.

The time shifting. Something the show does so well is play with chronology. This was done to great comedic effect in episodes like Brunch and The Platinum Rule. Tonight didn’t disappoint when Barney turned out to be the one yelling at Abby and the book Ted thought was Stella’s turned out to be the one Marshall left at her office.

My favorite thing of the night had to be the return of Romantic Ted. The Ted that never gives up when he’s smitten. The Ted that goes to great lengths to try and win the one he loves. Marshall’s stern talk last week must have kicked in because between his self-confessed complexity that requires repeated listens to his adorable two minute date replete with Ranjit and Wendy the Waitress, the Ted we knew and loved in season one is back. The Mix, I’m sure you’re excited to see him return.

What Was Bad

The worst was probably Britney. That’s saying something for the episode because she wasn’t terrible. She rushed through most of her lines and delivered them kind of flat—just like someone who isn’t a trained actor would. She’s no Jack McBrayer, that’s for sure. The rest of the cast is so comfortable in their characters and Sarah Chalke is so wonderful, that it is extra difficult to standout as a guest star. Do I think we’ll see Britney again? No, I don’t.

Maybe it was just me but I also thought the bit where Ted tried to cover up for not knowing who Abby was seemed a little dry and forced. The whole “I thought you said Alan”, “You said Abby”, “I thought I said Alan” bit didn’t do it for me.

Marshall’s hair. While it’s awful, I’m not sure that it doesn’t actually add something to the show if not only a reason to make fun of him even more.

Favorite Moments

Everyone had good lines tonight. It was only Lily that got shortchanged, and on her birthday nonetheless.

• “I thought it’d be cool to get a caterpillar tattoo then a couple weeks later…”
• “Do you know what you’re going to want to eat ten weeks from now?”
  “A sloppy joe, shrimp cocktail, and a milkshake”
• “I’m not some top 40 song, easily digestible. I require time, and multiple listens. I’m Stairway to Heaven”
• “Wow, Roger Daltry just rolled over in his grave. That’s not the right guy is it? He’s not even dead is he?” [Editor's Note: thanks Daphne]
• Barney getting defensive of magic and the subsequent punishment for sparking a fireball in the bar, with appearance by Wendy the Waitress.
• “It can’t be easy to woo someone while sticking your naked butt in their face.”
  “It works for Baboons. It’s called ‘presenting’”
• Robin, releasing her inner dude: “It’s time to nail the receptionist”
• The fact that Ted stamps his books “From the personal library of Ted Mosby”
• “Ted, every little boy wants to grow up to nail the doctor or the lawyer, but someone has to nail the receptionist.” <– that’s quality writing
• “Nice mustache Ted. Doctor, Magnum’s here to see you.”
• Fun trivia: In the end, when Stella tells Ted to come back if he wakes up with “a dolphin tattoo on your ankle”—Alyson Hannigan has that tattoo.
• “How would you like me to take you out to a fancy restaurant and then go on a shopping spree? Treat you the way you should be treated. I just have to swing by the hotel first. My bed was broken and I have to see if they fixed it.”
  “After they fix it, can we have sex on it before we go shopping?”

Barney’s Vocab Word of the Week

It would appear to be Folliculaphilia, which as far as I can tell, isn’t a real word at all. This imaginary condition, from which Robin also suffers, gives the women it infects an inability to date a man that doesn’t have a mustache. There is a Phalacrophobia, which is a fear of baldness, maybe that’s what he meant. [Editor's note: thanks meghana]

Closing

I leave you with two questions. First—that two-minute date at the end, adorable or lame? I want to hear from the guys and the gals. Second, has anyone seen Plan 9 from Outer Space or Manos The Hand of Fate? Which is worse?

PS. Did everyone catch the reference Stella made to going to a St. Patrick’s Day party but leaving early? What might this portend for the future? Her daughter Lucy = Luke + Leia?

PPS. For those of you into that sort of thing, Stella’s three friends (Kourtney, Gloria, and Brenda) were played by Christine Joaquin, Ria Pavia, and Caroline Whitney Smith respectively.

PPPS. Extra kudos to the show for shooting the entire two minute date in one long cut. That was a nice technical achievement and makes Radnor’s and Chalke’s work even more impressive. The song playing in that section is “Thirteen” by Big Star. Check it out on iTunes here. There’s also a Wilco version here. [Thanks meghana]

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